debate

Four benefits of using Social Media for customer support

You
may have heard of setting up Facebook, Twitter and blogs for your business, but
what about accounts specifically for customer support? As it turns out, there
are many benefits to doing the bulk of customer support via social media that
will save you time and money. Customer support through social media also
benefits your customers, making them more likely to use your services.

Marketing and exposureWhere do your customers spend most of their internet
time? More often than not, your customers are on a social media site. Why not
try and reach them exactly where they are? By having your customer support
available on Facebook or Twitter, you will not only make yourself more
accessible to questions and concerns, you will also increase your business's
exposure.

Keep your customers happyNo one likes being on hold, and there's no reason to
make this the only way for customers to reach you. Customers are more likely to
use your business if they're happy with your service. You can easily make your
customer support easier and more comfortable to use by engaging social media.
Additionally, many people are more comfortable coming online to ask a question.
It's simply much easier for them.

Less work for your businessWhen customers ask questions online, everyone can
see the following conversation. If one customer had a question, it's likely
many others did. The good news is, the customers don't need to repeat the
question, and you don't need to repeat the answer. Social media allows your
business to solve customer problems on a mass scale. Rather than dealing with
hundreds of individual phone calls, a few conversations over social media will
answer the more basic questions. This is easier for your customers. It's also
less work for you.

Boosting salesWhen customers are subscribed to your customer service feed,
it's easier to alert them to special offers and deals. Customers might not go
out of their way to see if you have a good deal right now, but if they like
your business, they won't mind seeing a good deal or offer show up during their
normal browsing. This allows you to sell more to your dedicated customer base.
If you've previously impressed your customers, they'll likely be pleased to be
notified of deals.

It's a good idea to have a customer support account
separate from normal business account. This makes it easier to organize the
goals of each account. It also makes it more straightforward for the customer.
If you have an account specifically for customer service, the customer knows
exactly where to go to answer their question.